1839] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



851 



beer gallon, our bushel will be too large. Mr. Da- 

 vies, the proiessor ol" mathematics at West Point, 

 published an arithmetic a (e\v years ago, intend- 

 ed for common schools, which contains a very 

 complete table; but the work 1 believe has not yet 

 come into common use, although it is certainly 

 superior to those generally used. 



The extra-;! li-om Arthur Young's 'Notes on the 

 Agriculture of'Lomhardy,' published in the number 

 of the Register for last April, page 196 under the 

 word "Omission," surprised me exceedingly. I 

 have long been in the habit of considering the cli- 

 mate of Italy, especially of the northern and middle 

 parts, as amongst the most pleasant in the world; 

 but Mr. Young informs us that "the great com- 

 plaint in Piedmont is the excessive heat in sum- 

 mer; equal, he was assured, to almost any that is 

 felt on the globe, and of a suffocating quality; 

 while the frosts in winter are as severe, in the con- 

 trary extreme."' While I considered the climate 

 of Italy, in general, so pleasant, I thought that of 

 Florence peculiarly so. With the idea of Flo- 

 rence, I always associate the ideas of clear sun- 

 shine, of flowers, and of JMillon's Valombrosa; 

 but if seems it was all an illusion ; ior Mr. Young 

 says — "I was at Florence in the beijinning of 

 November, and the ice was four inches thick." 

 He tells us also that "one-fif"th of all the produc- 

 tions of the earth are calculated to be destroyed 

 by hail and other accidents." And again he says, 

 "in the management of the vines in the Parma- 

 san, there is a practice which shows the constant 

 dread of severe fi-osts. All the vines are now (in 

 November) turned down, and the end shoots bu- 

 ried in the earth to preserve them" — although 

 this operation injures them. Ice four inches thick 

 on the first of November, and vines buried to pro- 

 tect them from the winter frosts, indicate a severi- 

 ty of winter cold, very near to that of JNlontreal 

 and Quebec in Canada. 



I have long considered our great limestone val- 

 ley, and the range of counties in Virginia imme- 

 diately east of the Blue Ridge, as naturally the 

 most desirable country in the United States, My 

 principle objection to it was, that it was too cold in 

 winter, and too warm in summer. But as in these 

 respects it seems to be greatly superior to the far 

 lamed Italy, the objection must be given up. 



While I think so highly of the "valley" and 

 the Piedment country east of the Blue Ridjre, I 

 would not disparage the tide-water region of Vir- 

 ginia. When you drain your marshes and mill- 

 ponds, and your fields, and prosecute an economi- 

 cal and careful system of cultivation, j-our country 

 will become as productive and as beautiful as the 

 Netherlands of Europe. But I. who li-om my in- 

 fancy, have been accustomed to hills and moun- 

 tains, could not live comlorlably in a plain conn- 

 try, out of sight of clear purling streams, verdant 

 fields, and picturesque scenery. 



One other thing in your quotations respecting 

 northern Italy, has sur|)rised me. From Arthur 

 Young's description of northern Italy, it would 

 seem to be one of the most fe,rtile and best culti- 

 vated countries in the world; but fi-om Professor 

 Symonds, account published in your last May 

 number, it seems that it is torn to fragments by 

 mountain torrents. The devastation he describes 

 is terrible. I have no data by which to asccr!;iin 

 accurately the year when Arthur Young made 

 his tour in Italy; but I cannot be far wrong in sup- 



posing it to have been about 45 years ao-o. Nei- 

 ther (lo I know when Prolt'ssor Symonds made his 

 tour; but say 5 years ago, it would then seem that 

 great change in the country (if indeed, there has 

 been a change,) must have taken place in the 

 short space of about 40 years. This does not ar- 

 gue mucli in favor of modern improvement, at 

 least in that country. 



From the garrulous strain of part of this com- 

 munication, you will readily believe that the wri- 

 ter chose a proper signature, when he adopted 

 that of Senex. 



P. S. Our wheat, rye and oats, in that part of 

 the valley in which I live, promise a most abun- 

 dant crop. In some parts of the valley I have 

 understood they are not so good. Much rain, 

 however, would spoil our fair prospects. The 

 timothy in our meadows, this season, has almost 

 all turned to cheat; but as you will, probably, not 

 like this phraseology, it being contrary to your 

 theory, I will say that our meadows, which for- 

 merly produced timothy, this season produce cheat. 

 This will be a serious draw-back on our fiirmers, 

 as cheat is a very worthless crop. Clover is very 

 scarce, so that our horses must depend, the ensu- 

 ing year, chiefly on grain feeding. S. 



[The article by Professor Symonds is much ol- 

 der than our correspondent supposed. It was first 

 published in 1784. Young's tour in Lombardy 

 was made in 17S9. — Ed. Far. Reg.] 



COUIVTER ESTIMATES, AND OBJECTIONS TO 

 THE ALLEGED PROFITS OF MULBERRY 

 CULTURE. NEW OBSTACLES TO THE TRO- 

 PICAL PLANT, SCHEME AND OPERATIONS. 



Translations of extracts from tivo letters written 

 ■in Spanish by myself to Sr. Don M. Margalli, 

 ex-governor of Tabasco, and dated at the Con- 

 sulate A. Campeachy, 3rd and 5th March, 1836. 



"I conclude this sketch of the morus multicaulis 

 by adding some data derived from many experi- 

 ments. 1. The quantity of leaves which may be 

 produced by one mecate* of mulberry trees can be 

 estimated at an average weight of 'ten quintals. f 

 Some cultivators say 8, others 9, others 13 quin- 

 tals ; and some even estimrae the produce as high 

 asii-om 13^ to 27 quintals the mecate: but it should 

 be observed that they speak of periods differing 

 from the 5th to the 26lh year of the plantation. I 

 have extracted these proportions from the mea- 

 sures of French hectares and English acres ; and 

 hence I have arrived at the resulting inference, 

 that without exaggeration one may e^x tract from 

 trees in the third year at the rate of 10 quintals of 

 lea\es from each mecate in each crop, i. e. 20 

 quintals of leaves from one mecate in one year. 

 2. The quantity of cocoons that may be obtained 

 from one quintal of leaves, I place at the medium 

 of six pounds and a half of cocoons. Some per- 

 sons have obtained 5 to 5\ and 5J pounds, and 

 others 7;^ to 7i lbs. cocoons to each quintal of 



* One mecate equal one-tenth ot an acre. 

 t One quintal equal 100 pounds. 



